The temple town of Melukote in Karnataka, known for its calm and devotion, was ripped apart by a story that began as an innocent friendship online — and spiraled into a chilling tale of love, betrayal, and revenge.
It all started in January 2024, when Deepika Lokesh, a 28-year-old schoolteacher, vanished without a trace.
To her neighbors, she was a devoted wife, a loving mother, and a cheerful presence in the community.
But behind the quiet smiles and school schedules, Deepika’s life had become tangled in a dangerous web — one spun out of Instagram reels, secret messages, and misplaced affection.
The Disappearance
January 20. Deepika left SET Public School on her scooter just after noon, as she did every day.
She never reached home. By nightfall, her family’s panic had turned to dread. Her father, Venkatesh, filed a missing person’s report, fearing the worst.
Investigators traced her phone, only to find it switched off. Her call records revealed frequent contact with one name — Nitish, a young man from Mysuru. When police tried to reach him, he, too, had vanished.
That was the first red flag.
A Fight in the Hills
Two days later, a video surfaced — filmed by tourists at the foothills of Shri Yoganarasimha Swamy Temple.
It showed a man and a woman arguing violently. The woman’s clothes matched the description in Deepika’s missing person complaint.
Police rushed to the spot. Among the scattered leaves and dry brush, they found Deepika’s abandoned Honda Dio.
Following a foul odor, they discovered a shallow grave. What lay inside confirmed everyone’s worst fears.
Deepika was dead — strangled, her body half-buried in the red soil of Melukote.
From Instagram to Obsession
The police investigation soon peeled back layers of a secret life. Nitish, 21, was the son of local Congress leader Narasimhe Gowda. Wealthy, confident, and active on Instagram, he met Deepika through her videos.
Their exchanges began as friendly chats and creative collaborations — short reels, playful captions, and harmless comments.
He affectionately called her akka (sister). But what started as a friendship soon deepened into something darker.
“They grew close quickly,” recalled an investigating officer. “He became possessive, obsessive. When she tried to distance herself, he couldn’t accept it.”
Deepika’s husband, Lokesh, had already sensed trouble. He had even confronted Nitish, warning him to stay away just weeks before her disappearance.
On January 20 — Nitish’s birthday — he begged Deepika to meet him “one last time.” She agreed. What followed was a confrontation that ended in horror.
Overwhelmed by anger and rejection, Nitish strangled her with her own dupatta, buried the body, and fled.
When arrested days later near Hospet, Nitish confessed. He claimed it was not premeditated — that it was “a moment of madness.”
The CBI charged him under Section 302 (murder) of the IPC. He spent a year in jail before being released on bail.
A Father’s Fury
But the story didn’t end there.
In May 2025, the cycle of grief turned into revenge. Venkatesh, Deepika’s father — a man broken by loss — allegedly plotted his own retribution.
Nitish had avoided returning to the village after his release, but his father Narasimhe had stayed.
When Venkatesh learned that Narasimhe was preparing for his daughter’s wedding, the sight of celebration enraged him. To him, it was a cruel reminder that the family of the man who killed his daughter could still smile, still move on.
In a fit of vengeance, he confronted Narasimhe in Manikyahalli, stabbed him in public, and was arrested within hours.
Echoes of Guilt
After his father’s murder, Nitish came forward again — this time claiming innocence, insisting that he had never killed Deepika. But by then, it no longer mattered.
The hills of Melukote had already witnessed two funerals, two shattered families, and a haunting silence that refused to fade.
What began as a digital friendship had spiraled into a real-world tragedy — a story of love gone wrong, and vengeance that consumed everyone it touched.
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